What’s your reason for moving?

It turns out that from 2012 to 2013, millions of people moved primarily for housing-related reasons. The U.S. Census Bureau found that people who moved in the past couple of years were moving because they wanted a new or better home/apartment, wanted less expensive housing, were renters that were ready to become owners, or wanted to live in a better neighborhood.

There are plenty of other factors that play into the decision to move. Family-related reasons, such as a change in marital status, accounted for 30%, while employment and other reasons like a new job, to be closer to work, or to look for a new job made up almost 20% of the reasons why people moved.

David Ihrke, a demographer for the Census Bureau and the report’s author, says that there is usually more than one factor to motivate someone to move, and the decision depends on the most important one.

“If one’s primary reason for moving is to be closer to work or having an easier commute, they may have to sacrifice other preferences. This could include forgoing cheaper housing options or settling for a different neighborhood. If they mainly want cheaper housing, they may have to deal with a longer commute,” says Ihrke.